


It's Rare That Something Feels This Right

by xLoveMx



Series: Play This From The Heart [3]
Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Late Night Car Rides, M/M, and talk about dead hamsters, and warm and fuzzy feelings, some more pining, somebody protect ricky
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-15
Updated: 2020-01-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:42:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22268869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xLoveMx/pseuds/xLoveMx
Summary: Ricky is staring, but the thing is: EJ is staring right back.
Relationships: Ricky Bowen/E.J. Caswell
Series: Play This From The Heart [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1599994
Comments: 23
Kudos: 154





	It's Rare That Something Feels This Right

**Author's Note:**

> Here comes part 3! And believe me when I say: I'm frustrating myself! xD But I just like a good slow burn. I promise to not wait 20 more parts for them to kiss though! ;) Enjoy! x

They had spent the last ten minutes in the car in silence. It hadn’t necessarily been an awkward silence, but Ricky had been trying to figure out what exactly to say, without sounding incredibly stupid.

The thing was: How was he supposed to even bring the subject of liking EJ up? Was he even supposed to bring it up at all? What if he’d been reading the signs wrong? Maybe the other boy had just gotten really into character yesterday?

Ricky knew next to nothing about acting, but he figured It probably wasn’t supposed to feel _that_ real.

“So…uh. Thanks for giving me a ride.” He eventually began, turning his attention away from the window, so he wouldn’t seem rude.

_Since when did you stop caring about being rude to EJ?_

The piano scene flashed before his eyes, and Ricky felt his stomach swoop at the simple thought of it.

_Damn it._

“Sure. I figured I might as well give you a ride, you looked a bit lost there. Why didn’t you go with Big Red?”

Ricky let out a small chuckle. “Because he’s got a crush on Ashlyn, and he wants to score some bonus points by helping her clean up.” Which was probably not something he should have told EJ in the first place, but this was easier to talk about than his feelings.

“He does?” EJ seemed surprised, but not entirely against the idea. Not that Ashlyn would give him any say in who she was seeing, but still. Ricky could see him being protective over his cousin.

“He seems like a nice guy,” EJ eventually continued, as they turned the corner into Ricky’s street. “He seems to have a tendency to show up at the worst times though,”

Ricky’s stomach swooped again at that, and he briefly wondered if he had misheard what EJ had just said. Or maybe he had misinterpreted it? It couldn’t possibly mean what he thought it meant, right?

Glancing over at the other, Ricky could see that EJ’s eyes were focused on the road, and his face didn’t seem to betray any of the emotions he might have been feeling.

“Yeah.” It was the lamest possible answer, but he wasn’t quite sure what else to say. He was…confused, to say the least. Confused about why he suddenly liked EJ, and confused about whether or not the other boy liked him too, or if he was imagining things.

Right now, Ricky wasn’t even sure which of the two would be worse.

“I mean…he means well. He’s always had my back and…I guess he was just looking out for me. That second house on the left is me,” he eventually added, glancing out the window, before he continued. “But…yeah. He does like to interrupt…important moments.”

EJ took a left, and parked his car in Ricky’s driveway, turning the engine off.

“I guess it’s nice to have friends like that.” EJ nodded, and for a moment Ricky felt his stomach twist ever so slightly. EJ had a lot of friends, or maybe it just always seemed that way. Ricky knew that being popular didn’t always equal having friends who had your back through tough times.

Surely, he had cursed Big Red for interrupting his moment with EJ, and he couldn’t sleep in the same room as him, but they were best friends, and Ricky would have driven a thousand miles and more to help him, and vice versa.

“I barely know anything about you.” Ricky eventually spoke, turning to look at the other boy.

“What?”

“I mean,” He could feel his stomach flip again, running his hand through his hair a little nervously. “You’re my understudy, and I barely know anything about you. Like…what’s your middle name? Did you have a pet growing up? I didn’t even know you could play piano until that rehearsal.”

There was a pause, where Ricky could feel his heart beating a little faster once more. The fact that EJ was smiling, however, wasn’t exactly doing anything to change that.

“Well. Technically EJ stands for _Elijah Jonathan_ , so I guess that would be my middle name right there. My Mom is allergic to any sort of animal hair, so we´ve never really had pets. I once captured a bunch of ladybugs and kept them in a jar under my bed, but that only lasted until the housekeeper found them and screamed her lungs out.” He chuckled at the memory. “And I’ve learned to play piano when I was five. My parents thought it would help me get further along in the long run. I’ve always exhibited a certain talent for the performing arts, so they thought it would do me good. It also helps with impressing the girls.”

 _And boys?_ Ricky wanted to ask, because he had certainly been impressed, and being impressed wasn’t a bad thing, right? There were probably quite a few boys who looked up to EJ, in the literal and figurative way.

 _They probably don’t want to kiss him though_ , the voice in his head added, and Ricky almost sighed.

“What about you?”

“Mhm?” EJ’s voice pulled him from his thoughts again, and Ricky instantly hoped that he hadn’t been staring.

“Middle name? Pets?” He was smiling still, and Ricky instantly began to relax a little more into his seat.

“No middle name, no pets. We used to have a hamster, but unfortunately, he hanged himself while trying to climb out of his house and getting stuck between the roof and the rest of the house. Kinda put me off having any sort of pets for a while.”

For a moment, EJ was just staring at him, before he burst into laughter.

“I’m sorry,” He chuckled, seemingly trying to get enough air into his lungs to breathe properly. “That’s tragic, but also a little bit funny.”

“It wasn’t for 9-year-old Ricky,” Came the prompt answer, though Ricky was laughing, too. He hadn’t felt this lighthearted in a while. The whole musical experience was fun, most of the time anyway, and it did a good job of taking his mind off things like his parents’ divorce, but it also came with its own kind of problems.

Talking with EJ though? Well, technically that came with problems too, but those usually only came to haunt him when he was lying awake in his bed, wondering whether or not the other boy would have kissed him, if they hadn’t been interrupted.

“I thought about getting my Dad a dog or something. He’s been burying himself in work ever since…my Mom left.” It had been a while, but it was still hard to talk about, and the fact that she obviously already had a new boyfriend, and that probably for a while, wasn’t helping. Not that Ricky didn’t want her to be happy, he’d just rather it wasn’t a hundred miles away from him.

“My parents don’t really talk to each other.” EJ eventually replied, shrugging his shoulders slightly. “My Dad is always away on business, and my Mom does stuff with her charity work. I mean…it’s always been like that, I guess, but I don’t get why they stay together.”

“Out of habit, maybe?” Ricky replied without thinking, and for a moment their eyes met again. “I mean…I guess that’s what my parents did? And when my Mom went away for work, she probably realized that things can change. You can learn to love someone over time, but you can unlove someone, too.”

Maybe that was what had happened with Nini and him, too. Looking back at it now, Ricky realized he’d been holding on to her so badly, because she had always been a part of his life. Ever since kindergarten, they had been friends. She had always been there for him, so being without her had seemed scary.

Now that they were talking again though, Ricky had realized that he could still have her by his side, without having to be in love with her, and being friends was way less scary than being in love.

“I’m sorry about your parents.” Once again it was EJ’s voice that pulled him from his thoughts, and Ricky glance down at where their knees were touching ever so slightly, since he had shifted in his seat.

It was just the tiniest of touches, something he wouldn’t even have noticed if it had been anyone other than EJ, but because it was EJ, Ricky couldn’t help but feel his skin prickle ever so slightly.

“I’m sorry about yours, too.” He eventually replied.

“Should we go back to talking about dead hamsters?” EJ then chuckled, “I have a feeling that would be less depressing.”

A small laughter fell from Ricky’s lips. “May he rest in peace. Or…you know, hang.”

EJ was laughing again, and it made Ricky’s stomach swoop. Part of him wanted to keep saying silly stuff, just to make EJ laugh.

Part of him was also still wondering how this had all happened. It almost seemed like love at first sight, but at second try. Like he might have caught these feelings earlier, if he hadn’t been so set on hating EJ from the moment he had seen him with Nini.

Looking up at the other boy, Ricky knew that he was staring again. The thing was: EJ was staring right back.

Ricky’s heart was still beating faster, and in the silence that had fallen over them, he almost worried that EJ could hear it. _Maybe he wouldn’t mind though_ , Ricky thought, because somehow the other boy had leaned in closer, their knees now fully pushed together.

Ricky only noticed that he was leaning in, too, when their noses almost brushed against each other.

“So, dead hamsters, huh?” EJ muttered, and Ricky would have kissed him. _Wanted_ to kiss him so badly, that he nearly let out a frustrated scream, when the door opened and his father stepped out onto the porch.

“Ricky? Everything alright?” His voice could be heard through the closed car windows, and before Ricky could say anything, EJ had already pulled back.

“You should…probably go.” He quickly spoke, and Ricky almost thought to see regret in his eyes, as he leaned back in his seat.

“I…yeah. Sure. Thanks for the ride,” Ricky managed, his heart still beating so hard against his ribcage that it almost hurt. “Uh…text me when you get home?”

“Yeah, will do.”

When he was getting out of the car, Ricky could feel his face heating up ever so slightly, remembering that he should probably change EJ’s contact name to something other than _asshole._

“Everything okay?” His Dad repeated, and Ricky just nodded as he passed him, walking into the house.

“Yeah, all good Dad. Rehearsals were just long and tiring. I’m going to my room.”

It was a lame excuse, again, but Ricky really wasn’t in the mindset to talk.

“Do you want dinner? I was going to order pizza,” His father called after him, as he was already halfway up the stairs.

Ricky took a deep breath and eventually stopped, turning around to nod. “Yes. I’ll come downstairs later.” He really wasn’t all that hungry, but he also knew his Dad would be asking questions if he’d skip dinner, and Ricky really was in no state to talk about what was going on with him. He wasn’t even sure he’d know where to start.

He had just dropped onto the bed when his phone buzzed, making his heart miss a beat. How fast was EJ driving?

To be fair, Ricky had no idea where exactly the other boy lived, but he assumed it wasn’t in this neighborhood.

Picking up his phone, he read the message that was showing on the screen.

**From: Big Red, 8.12pm**

_Plan worked. Got my kiss! :P Best night ever!!!_

Ricky just buried his face in his pillow, and screamed.


End file.
